Binding study advice

Students of Leiden University are issued with binding study advice (BSA). This means you must obtain sufficient study credits in the first year of your Bachelor’s programme to be permitted to continue studying. Some programmes also have additional requirements.

Requirements

To be issued with positive study advice, you must obtain sufficient study credits in the first year of your Bachelor’s programme.

Full time students: 45 EC

Part time students: 30 EC

Some programmes have additional requirements, for example passing a specific course. Look in your programme’s Course and Examination regulations to find out if any additional requirements are in place.

How does it work?

Study advice is issued by your study programme’s board of examiners. Your study advice will be sent to your uMail address and can also be found under the email tab in uSis Student Self Service.

First advice (non-binding)

You will receive your first advice half way through the academic year, by 31 January at the latest. This is non-binding. If you are falling behind, the board of examiners will warn you to improve your performance to avoid being issued with negative study advice.

Second advice (non-binding)

If your results are insufficient in May/June, you will again be issued with advice, which serves as a final warning. This is also non-binding.

Binding study advice

You will receive your binding study advice at the end of the academic year, by 15 August at the latest.

Postponement
Did you register on your study programme later than 1 September and are therefore only following part of the academic year? In this case you can ask the board of examiners to postpone the issuance of binding study advice until the end of your second year.

Negative binding study advice

If you receive negative binding study advice, you must stop your studies and may not register on the same programme at Leiden University for the coming four years.

Lodging an appeal

If you do not agree with your binding study advice, you can appeal against it.

Appeal within one week
Make sure to lodge an appeal within one week of the issuance of your study advice. You will then be informed whether you can continue studying before the start of the new academic year.

You can also lodge an appeal at a later date: within six weeks of the issuance of your study advice. It can take up to 16 weeks to receive a decision on your appeal. During this period you may not register on your study programme. You may follow classes and take exams, however you will only receive your grades and study credits once it has been decided that you may continue studying.

Exceptional circumstances

Will you obtain too few study credits as the result of exceptional circumstances, such as illness or student board duties? If so, the board of examiners must take this into consideration when issuing study advise. However, you must report your circumstances on time to your study adviser.